The Juno space probe has arrived in orbit around Jupiter in a historic moment for astronomy after a five-year, 1.8 billion-mile voyage.

The spacecraft, named after the Roman goddess, completed a high-stakes manoeuvre which saw it fire a rocket to slow its 150,000mph (250,000kph) approach to the planet.

Cheers and applause erupted in mission control at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) at the California Institute of Technology when a signal arrived confirming the burn was complete at around 4.54am.

However the mission still faces the huge challenge of operating the 1.1 billion US dollar (£890 million) probe in one of the solar system's harshest environments, where circuitry-frying levels of radiation and high-velocity dust and particles will be a constant threat.

Should all go to plan, Juno's instruments and camera could provide insights into the history of the solar system and return stunning images of the planet.

The spacecraft began the perilous final stage of its journey in the early hours of Tuesday morning with a 35-minute blast from its rocket engine.

Mission control commentator Jennifer Delavan, of Lockheed Martin, which built Juno, announced "Juno, welcome to Jupiter" when the arrival was confirmed.

Juno spacecraft mission timeline

The titanium-armoured probe's task is to improve our understanding of Jupiter's formation and evolution by using complex instruments to peer through the thick atmosphere and its famous Great Red Spot.

Juno's array will study the gas planet's composition, gravity, magnetic field and the source of its raging 384mph winds, while a panoramic camera will also return images of the planet in detail never seen before.

Scientists hope that analysis of Jupiter's interior structure will ultimately help them understand the history and formation of the wider solar system.

It will be some days before Juno begins beaming data and images back to Earth, as the spacecraft's camera and other instruments were switched off for arrival.

Scott Bolton, left, and Rick Nybakken are seen in a post-orbit insertion briefing at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory following the solar-powered Juno spacecraft entered orbit around Jupiter on Monday, July 4, 2016, in Pasadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

Juno was launched into space by an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on August 5 2011.

Today's Google doodle celebrates Juno's arrival at Jupiter with an 8-bit cartoon of the probe and mission control jumping for joy.